I'm planning to stay in Joensuu as an Erasmus student for 6 months. School will give me €500 per month. I really don't have any idea about living expenses, so will this be enough or do I need couple of euros more ?

How Much Money Do I Need to Live in Joensuu for 6 Months ?

You could survive with that money with a bit of struggle but you can't really live comfortably.

Asumming you would live in dormitories or shared student flat, the rent could go down to 200-250 euros. Then considering student prices for lunch and buses (50 + 2.6*20) 100 more. And then the rest are for personal expenses.

I almost did it for six months but it was troublesome.

All the prices I mention are based on Helsinki prices actually so it might be somehow cheaper in Joensuu.

Other people might be more precise/helpful but I just wanted to share my opinion/experience

The Finnish government does not consider that enough for a student to survive on. If you look at what they expect officially from non-EU people, it's somewhere in the vicinity of €700 per month assuming you get student discounts on housing/transport. (I know this doesn't apply for you as you're EU, but they have reasons for using this figure based on research into the cost of living.)

And I am sure most people in here would agree that is barely above starving.

Your basic housing, transport, utilities will eat most of the money easily. The student lunch discounts can be pointless because in some places they'll still cost more than a student can afford.

Do not count on finding work. Most students do not and you will not be a special snowflake. I don't want to say "don't come" but if you have no savings or other income, "don't come". Check with your home government whether you can get any kind of stipend or financial support or student benefit or loans - some countries actually offer this for foreign studies.

I would say realistically you should have at least 700-800 Euro a month to live like a human being, and be able to have a bit of a social life. Joensuu is far away from... well, anything, so if you want to see other places in Finland you should reserve some money for traveling.

You could apply for student housing, or look for a flat share yourself. Maybe you get lucky and find something cheap that keeps your costs down. http://www.joensuunelli.fi/en/